Science through Art by Jessie Kendall-Bar   

The Opening Reception for Jessie Kendall-Bar’s exhibit, Science through Art, will be held at UU Santa Monica on Sunday, January 5, 2020 from 11:00 am until 1:00 pm. Come chat with the artist; she is a PhD candidate in Marine Biology who believes that scientific progress is futile unless communicated successfully. During the reception marine mammal themed pillows, phone cases, bags, t-shirts and other goodies will be available for your consideration. Light snacks will be provided. The exhibit will be open every Sunday from 9:00 am until 12:00 noon and on weekdays by appointment through January 26th. The exhibit is free and open to the public.

Jessie’s illustrations, photography, and cinematography aim to accurately portray science and its role in preserving the underwater ecosystem. She has illustrated two children’s books. The Castor Oil Rig Tales, published by AzBukiVeri Press, depicts the conservation success story of a community of marine organisms, which colonizes an abandoned oil rig. Her illustrations for a second children’s book, Looking for Marla, tells the story of a clownfish which changes sex from male to female (which is what male clownfish normally do when the mother disappears).

At the interface of science and art, Jessie endeavors to make meaningful discoveries and to convey those results broadly and creatively to impact diverse populations. To reach her audiences she uses photography, animation, illustration, cinematography, science comics, wood burning, alcohol markers, watercolors, acrylics and more.

ARTIST STATEMENT

I’m a cityscape oil painter in love with intense color and deep contrast. The fluid light, dramatic vistas, stark landscapes and energized urban neighborhoods of the Los Angeles provide endless inspiration for my work. I paint with a vibrant palette and expressive brushstrokes to share my vision of an essence of the urban experience.

I’m drawn to the tension between nature and the hand-of-man on the city. I ask the viewer to observe situations so common that we experience them unconsciously; to see places and objects in a new light, and to consider that they are rich in meaning and beautiful.

BIO

Earning a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Theatre from the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, Lambert was a professional actress for nearly two decades. Her theatrical background lends natural drama and mystery to her work as well as joy and celebration.

She studied art for two years at The Art Center School of Design in Pasadena, California, before she met her mentor, museum-collected artist Margaret Garcia in 2009. Since Lambert’s first exhibit in 2011, she has participated in more than 85 shows and exhibitions, including solo exhibits at the Mesa Contemporary Arts Museum (2017, Mesa, AZ), The City of Burbank Creative Arts Center Gallery (2016), ChimMaya Art Gallery (2016, Los Angeles), and the Jean Deleage Art Gallery (2014, Los Angeles). Group exhibitions include, among many others, The Lines Gallery (Bergamot Station, Santa Monica, 2017) and the TAG Gallery (2020, LA Open Exhibition).

ARTICLE WRITTEN ABOUT BONNIE LAMBERT BY STEVE WEINGARTEN FOR THE MAGAZINE “1VOICE.”

“I was an actress for many years and always felt electrified when I performed in front of a live audience,” Bonnie Lambert said. “Now I’m an oil painter, and my years on stage are one of my greatest influences.”

Lambert’s world revolves around gridlocked rush-hour traffic, edgy boulevards turning electric under neon, and power-lines and telephone poles slicing the sky into geometric shapes. She has captured Los Angeles vistas from the Arroyo Secco to Lincoln Park and beyond in a different light. 

“My actors are a vibrant palette and expressive, impasto brushstrokes,” She said. “I hope viewers will be moved to see how beautiful this wonderful world is.”

Lambert studied at the Art Center School of Design. She has attended Margaret Garia’s painting workshop since 2009, and teaches oil painting at Plaza de la Raza.

Her work has been shown at the Southwest and Forest Lawn museums Los Angeles, the Pasadena Museum of History, Latino Museum of Art in Pomona, and Contemporary Arts Museum in Mesa, Arizona.

On behalf of our Art Director, Beverly Alison, UU Santa Monica would like to invite you to our Art Wall Opening Reception on Sunday, September 8 at 11:00 am for:

Vietnam: Land of Diversity

Figure 1: 18”x22” Price $110 Figure 3: 13”x14” Price $90   The Opening Reception for Vietnam: Land of Diversity, a collection of paintings from Vietnam, will be held on Sunday, September 8 from 11:00am until 1:00 pm. These works were gathered by Rhoda Lurie this year. At the reception more than 100 painting will be available for your consideration. Light snacks will be provided. The exhibit will be open every Sunday from 9:00 am until 1:00 pm and on weekdays by appointment through September 29th. The exhibit is free and open to the public.   Rhoda Lurie is an Art Historian who has traversed the many exotic places in the world in pursuit of art and artifacts. She has been to 79 countries and has brought back many items that have enriched many people’s lives.   The Vietnam: Land of Diversity exhibition features many artists that Lurie found as she searched Vietnam earlier this year. She was especially interested in people from the Hill tribes: the Hmong, Tay, Red Dao and Giay in the Sapa areas of the Northwest part of Vietnam.   The colorful paintings in this collection reflect the people, their traditional dress, village life and more. Lurie loved the ethnic diversity, the freedom of the paintings and the beauty that they display. Many of the paintings are on rice paper or canvas. Charcoal drawings, collages and calligraphic paintings in a variety of shapes and sizes add to the wide range of this extensive collection. Each picture is individually matted and ready for framing. A biography of the artist is attached to each picture.   You are invited to enrich your home with a painting or two from this unique and unusual collection.
1260 18th Street, Santa Monica, CA 90404 310-829-5436	Contact Art Director, Beverly Alison, balison@aol.com for further info about this show.   For appointments contact the church office. Cyndee at assistant@uusm.org 310-829-5436 x102   On Sundays, follow the signs to church parking. Handicap parking is available behind the church.

Figure 4: 12”x16” Price $90